Managing Anger In The Workplace

Help Employees Manage Anger for a More Productive Workplace

by Jeffrey Moses
Anger in the workplace comes in many forms and degrees. It can be as mild as unspoken resentment against a co-worker or manager, and as overt as verbal or physical abuse of fellow employees. When advancing to the point of disrupting work or making the work environment unpleasant, anger among individuals in a company needs to be recognized and managed.The two key words in the preceding sentence are 'recognized' and 'managed.' It's vital for owners and supervisors to recognize signs of anger in all forms. In particular, it's important to know when anger is proceeding beyond a normal stage of frustration. Most psychologists agree that anger is a natural and inevitable human emotion. When the expression and self-understanding of anger is not properly handled, however, anger becomes potentially disruptive and counterproductive to individuals and the company as a whole.Supervisors should be on the lookout for signs of resentment, frustration and overt antagonism among employees. Signs of anger include: arguments or physical confrontation among employees (often instigated by one employee in particular); employees who 'get back' at others by undermining their activities (often without telling others of their anger); employees who criticize others constantly; and employees who become surly, spiteful, irritable or withdrawn.When an employee is overly angry or aggressive, supervisors should meet with the individual and try to find out what is the cause of frustration. Unexpressed and uncontrolled anger can result in difficulties between employees, disruption of workflow and health problems within the individuals harboring angry feelings. When appropriate, professional counseling may be suggested. Be sure to examine the stated reasons of an employee's anger. It's unreasonable to think that all employee anger is unfounded and illogical. Managers should examine situations and employee relations within the company to determine if sources of anger are indications that real problems exist and that changes truly need to be made. Once the source of anger is recognized, the anger can be managed. Steps to follow include:1. Becoming aware that the outer sources of anger often cannot be changed, but that internal attitudes that lead to buildup of anger can be changed.2. Working with professionals to handle feelings that lead to inappropriate expressions of anger or to internal feelings of increasing anger. These include therapy, relaxation techniques, meditation and other proven ways to defuse internal feelings of anger.3. Learning appropriate ways to express anger or feelings of dissatisfaction to others. 4. Taking all possible steps to restructure situations that are leading to anger. As mentioned previously, sometimes anger indicates that real changes need to be made in the work environment.5. Consciously avoiding individuals or activities that lead to anger. While this is not often practical, a person should avoid all unnecessary encounters or situations that lead to unreasonable anger.

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